Los Angeles, USA — The state Supreme Court yesterday temporarily blocked the Internet release of summaries of personnel files of 117 priests accused of molestation.
The files from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles had been expected to provide an unprecedented look at how the archdiocese handled suspected child molesters and identify some accused priests whose names have not yet been made public.
Known as proffers, they reveal when the church was told of alleged misconduct, who made the report and what action was taken.
The state Supreme Court intervened less than 15 minutes before the information was to be made public at 5 p.m. by sending the case back to the appeals court that had cleared the way for the release, said Donald Steier, an attorney who represents 26 of the priests.
Victims of alleged abuse reacted with anger to the delay.
“Of course, we’re disappointed,” said Mary Grant, spokeswoman for Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests. “Now the little truth that could have come out of (the release) is being blocked again.”
Archdiocese officials also said they were “disappointed” that the proffers could not be released yesterday as anticipated.
“The archdiocese intended to make these proffers public as part of its promise to be forthright and transparent,” archdiocese officials said in a statement. “... It continues to be our intention to release this information if and when court rulings allow it.”
The proffers are the result of mediation between the archdiocese and attorneys for victims aimed at settling some 550 molestation claims against the nation’s largest archdiocese.
The material has been set for posting on the archdiocese Web site since last December. But Steier won an emergency stay from the 2nd District Court of Appeal and then took the case to the state Supreme Court, which extended the stay yesterday.
The Supreme Court did not immediately release details of yesterday’s decision.
In his petition to the court, Steier said releasing the proffers would contradict previous court decisions holding that mediation was confidential unless disclosure was specifically authorized by the state Legislature.
He also said the archdiocese and lawyers for the alleged victims initially agreed the proffers would remain confidential.
Steier said the state Supreme Court’s action was a victory for his clients as well as anyone involved in confidential mediation proceedings.
“It doesn’t just affect my clients,” he said.
The abuse lawsuits were filed under a 2002 state law that suspended for one year the statute of limitations for sexual abuse claims. They are among nearly 1,000 claims filed against the Roman Catholic Church in California under that law.
The church is battling to keep full personnel files from prosecutors investigating at least two Los Angeles priests for alleged sex crimes.
A retired judge appointed to review those cases said last September that prosecutors could review those files as part of their investigation. The ruling is pending on appeal.
Church attorneys contend those files are protected by the First Amendment because they contain confidential communications between priests and confessors that are central to Catholic beliefs.
The church also said turning over the documents would violate the separation of church and state by creating excessive government entanglement in the affairs of the church.